Three-day workout split: full week, enough recovery.

A sustainable three-day gym split with full-body exposure, exercise selection, progression and alternatives.

DIRECT ANSWER

Three-day workout split: full week, enough recovery. This template is for a beginner or intermediate lifter who can protect three sessions most weeks. Monday, Wednesday and Friday full-body sessions with different main movement emphases.

Who this is for

A beginner or intermediate lifter who can protect three sessions most weeks.

Most sessions should take roughly 50–75 minutes when rest periods and equipment access are predictable.

Weekly schedule

Monday, Wednesday and Friday full-body sessions with different main movement emphases.

The sessions

Warm up for the movement and load in front of you. The listed sets are working sets.

  • Day A: squat, press, row, leg curl, lateral raise
  • Day B: Romanian deadlift, pulldown, incline press, split squat, curl
  • Day C: leg press, shoulder press, supported row, leg extension, triceps extension

How to progress

Repeat the same core movements long enough to interpret performance. Add reps, then a small amount of load when the range and effort target are met.

Keep one to three repetitions in reserve for most working sets unless the programme gives a different, deliberate target.

Substitutions

Replace around equipment, pain-free execution and skill. Keep the weekly pattern balanced rather than forcing one named lift.

Common mistakes

Do not add exercises simply because the session felt short. Avoid changing several variables at once, and do not carry a missed session into the next day if that destroys the rest of the week.

Use it in Bulk Coach

Recreate the session as a saved workout, assign its weekday if the schedule is fixed, and choose each catalogue exercise by its intended movement role. One-click import is not claimed; review exercise names, sets and rep ranges before the first session.

Sources and further reading

  1. ACSM progression models for resistance training
  2. Proximity-to-failure systematic review
Updated 7 August 2026Reviewed by James Wood, founder